New mobile phone directory enquiries service probably won't kill us all in our beds

Mobile phone-toting consumers can prepare themselves to be up in arms (as the cliché always goes) after the announcement that a new mobile directory enquiries company is set to launch next week.

Connectivity, the company who are launching the service, 118800.co.uk, say they’ve acquired millions of numbers along with details of owners, sold to them legitimately by market research businesses.

They also claim that no numbers will be given out to enquirers and that their operators will instead directly connect enquirers to the people they are trying to reach. The call receiver will also be given the option of taking the call or not and will receive an SMS containing the details of the person who is trying to contact them.

So it’s probably not as bad as it initially sounds. In fact, if you’ve been a diligent citizen and always tick the correct boxes on forms when you’re asked if your info can be used by a third party, then you probably won’t appear on the Connectivity database anyway.

Appearing in 118800’s listings is opt-out but that process could take as long as four weeks to effect. Find out how you can opt-out here. There’s been some mild outrage from commentators and privacy addicts, but is there really any need? Do you envisage a time when you’ll be bothered five times a day by various people trying to contact you via 118800 or will that be the sole preserve of celebrities? Our comments box, as ever, is gagging for you to spill your thoughts into it.

Just checked it out, pile of shite, they send a text to the person you are looking for, charge you £1 for the pleasure, and the person who recieves the text may or may not return the call. How do you even know that they did send the text to the stalkee?

It took over 40 phone calls (0800 138 6263) and 2 hours to get through to talk to someone to have my mobile numbers removed and then they tell me that they are just sub-contracted to run the service, and they had been briefed that they would be receiving a lot of flak over this.
4 weeks to remove, and they will not prevent your number being used during that 4 weeks, also they refuse to send you confirmation that your details have been removed from their database.
If Connectivity Ltd. are that confident that the service is useful and commercially viable, why do they not use an opt-in policy, instead of buying dodgy lists.
http://www.twitter.com/ripoffbritain for updates on the 118800 privacy disaster.

As stated in the article, if you are the kind of person who cares about prvacy then they surely won't have your number anyway as you won't have frivolously filled in forms. As I understand it you won't get sales calls through this service, they already have your information (from the same sources 118 800 use) and can call you whenever they like.

Thw writing and sending of viruses is both illegal and is destroying the Internet, however I would have no objections to anyone deliberately sending a virus to those low-life companies who keep sending me junk emails and junk texts. It would have to be a good virus - capable of wiping out their servers.